FIFA World Cup Rewind: Brazil 'steal' glory from England in 1970

Many believed that the England squad for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico was even stronger than the team that won the World Cup at Wembley in 1966 and they were expected to defend the crown under Bobby Moore. To prepare for the first ever World Cup in North America, England opted to play two friendly matches before, one in Colombia and another against Ecuador.When they checked into a hotel in Bogota, the state capital of Colombia, the England players had little idea that a small incident there would shatter the morale of the side.
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It all began after Moore and Bobby Charlton’s visit to a jeweller close to their team hotel before their game against Colombia. The players spent some time there but left the shop without buying anything. Later, to their surprise, a shop assistant accused Moore of stealing a bracelet from one of the display cases. Moore and Charlton were questioned by the security staff but were allowed to leave. After playing their friendly games against Colombia and Ecuador, the English squad had to stay in the same hotel while returning from Ecuador but another witness came forward to depose in the alleged ‘theft case’ and Moore got arrested. The defender remained under house arrest for four days and the England team flew to Mexico without their captain. The investigation continued but without any concrete evidence the case fell flat and the authorities allowed Moore to join the squad and play in the tournament, the English side were jolted by the developments and they bowed out in quarterfinals against West Germany.
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Many fans, especially the English ones, argued that the bracelet scandal was either an attempt to blackmail or to destroy confidence of an upbeat English side. It became a diplomatic controversy and even the then-England Prime Minister Harold Wilson had to intervene to find a solution.

The tournament saw Brazil fielding arguably the greatest-ever World Cup team, comprising Pele, Tastao, Rivellino and Jairzinho. They won all the six games they played in the tournament. Brazil’s lucid attacking style won them many admirers as they also scored one of the greatest all-time World Cup goals in the final. Brazil were leading 3-1 against Italy in the title clash with four minutes to go for the final whistle. The move that started from the Brazilian defence saw skipper Carlos Alberto running almost 50 metres on the right flank to receive a pass from Pele and unleashing a powerful right-footer that bludgeoned the Italian net to help the Canerians keep the Jules Rimet trophy to themselves for winning the World Cup thrice.